Microsoft Aims for Mass Kinect Adoption at E3 2011 Press Conference

Microsoft wants a hardcore audience picking up Kinect, along with a casual audience.

Microsoft's 2011 Electronic Entertainment Expo showed the company's continued focus on their Kinect peripheral, with a dominant shift towards bringing in a more dedicated gaming audience. Franchises now utilizing the motion sensing camera include Mass Effect 3, Ghost Recon: Future Soldier, and Fable: The Journey.

The company did not forget about the casual audience either, producing live demos of Dance Central 2 and Kinect Sports Season 2. Both Kinect Star Wars and Sesame Street titles seem like they're aiming for a younger set, or the general family unit.

Other major announcements include the expected reveal of IPTV, allowing cable and local channels to be viewed (and almost certainly recorded) via the Xbox 360, further cementing the Xbox 360's placement as an all-in-one entertainment box. No date, pricing, or providers were announced however. Also surprising was an initiative with the UFC, MMA fighting pay-per-views now being broadcast live over the Xbox 360 with various interactive features.

The rest of the show was filled in with the expected, such as live demos of Modern Warfare 3, Gears of War 3, and more information on Forza Motorsport 4. Their biggest punch came from the closing moments, the announcement of a brand new Halo trilogy, beginning with Halo 4 in 2012. The teaser trailer showed series protagonist Master Chief escaping from a devastated space craft before entering what appeared to be some type of Death Star-inspired enemy ship.The fight will apparently continue.

Matt Paprocki is a 13-year veteran of the video game, movie, and home media scene. He has written thousands of reviews, has been published on a variety of websites, and contributes his thoughts daily on a diverse range of topics.